Joey Chestnut Net Worth (Money & Salary)

What is Joey Chestnut’s Net Worth and Career Earnings?

With a net worth of $3 million, Joey Chestnut stands out as an American competitive eater, widely regarded as the most successful in the sport’s history. His rise to fame began in 2007, when he claimed victory at the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest for the first time. As of July 4, 2023, he has won this prestigious competition 16 times. Throughout various periods, Joey has achieved the title of the top-ranked eater globally, as recognized by the Major League of Eating.

The journey of Chestnut towards becoming a competitive eating legend started in 2005, marking his debut at the Nathan’s contest where he ate 32 hot dogs. His swift ascent led him to dethrone Takeru Kobayashi, the previous champion, in 2007. Since then, he has maintained his position as a leading figure in the competitive eating arena.

Besides his accomplishments at Nathan’s, Chestnut has set multiple records across different food categories. Notable feats include devouring 182 chicken wings in half an hour, 141 hard-boiled eggs in 8 minutes, and 53 soft beef tacos in 10 minutes. His most extraordinary achievement occurred in 2021, when he consumed 76 hot dogs and buns within just 10 minutes, thereby establishing a new world record. His exceptional talent for quickly consuming large amounts of food has earned him the nickname “Jaws,” making him a prominent name in the competitive eating community.

Annual Earnings

The Nathan’s contest offers a top prize of $10,000, which, while not excessively high, significantly enhances the visibility for these athletes throughout the year. A leading competitive eater can potentially earn between $250,000 and $500,000 annually from prize winnings and sponsorship deals. Takeru Kobayashi, Chestnut’s long-time rival, has not participated in Nathan’s events recently due to a contract dispute with the Major League of Eating.

Joey has also launched a line of condiments that carry his name, featuring mustard, dipping sauces, coney sauce, hot sauce, and more.

Impossible Foods Endorsement

In June 2024, news broke of Joey signing a 4-year endorsement deal worth $1.2 million with vegan food company Impossible Foods. This agreement translates to an average annual payment of $400,000, which may somewhat limit Joey’s participation in Nathan’s annual Fourth of July contest. However, reports suggesting he was banned from the contest at the time of the announcement were inaccurate.

Netflix Kobayashi Showdown

The day following the announcement of his Impossible Foods deal, it was disclosed that Joey had also signed a contract with Netflix to engage in a live face-off against Kobayashi. The live event, titled “Chestnut Vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef,” is set to air on September 2, 2024.

Early Life

Born on November 25, 1983, in Fulton County, Kentucky, Joey Chestnut completed high school before enrolling at San Jose State University. It was here, in 2005, that he started engaging in eating competitions. However, he didn’t graduate until 2012, partly due to frequent travel for various food competitions.

One

One of the major early events for Joey was an asparagus-eating competition, where he triumphed in first place over high-ranked eater Rich LeFevre. Joey managed to consume nearly six and a half pounds of deep-fried asparagus in just 11.5 minutes.

Turning Professional

His journey began in 2005 when he participated in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest for the first time, which would lead to many more in his career. He secured third place by eating 32 hot dogs, while Sonya Thomas placed second with 37 and the champion, Takeru Kobayashi, finished with 49. The same year, he established a new world record for eating 32.5 grilled cheese sandwiches in ten minutes, earning the title at the GoldenPalace World Grilled Cheese Eating Championship.

Joey’s rise to eating stardom continued in 2005 when he outperformed Sonya Thomas in the Waffle House World Waffle Eating Championship and placed second in the Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship.

During the Nathan’s event in 2006, Kobayashi set the world record with 53 and 3/4 hot dogs, while Joey came in second, having eaten 52, which became the U.S. record.

In the following year, Chestnut won the Wing Bowl XV held in Philadelphia, devouring 182 chicken wings in 30 minutes. He also clinched victory at the annual Nathan’s Contest, defeating six-time champion Kobayashi with 66 hot dogs against Kobayashi’s 63. To top off 2007, Joey claimed his title at the Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship, finishing 103 Krystal burgers in under eight minutes.

From 2007 to 2015, Joey went on to secure eight consecutive Nathan’s Contest titles.

In 2020 and again in 2021, new records were set by him, first eating 75 hot dogs followed by 76 hot dogs, both in just 10 minutes. He won his 15th Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest title in 2022, despite an interruption from a protestor whom he subdued in a chokehold, still achieving 63 hot dogs in the allotted time.

Although Matt Stonie claimed victory in the 2015 contest, Joey reclaimed his title in 2016 by eating 70 hot dogs, setting a new record and continuing to win every competition between 2016 and 2020.

His record for a single event remains at 76 hot dogs.

In 2008, Chestnut set two significant world records. In February, he achieved a new record at the Wing Bowl by consuming 241 wings within 30 minutes. He also devoured 78 matzo balls during the Kenny & Ziggy’s World Matzoh Ball Eating Championship in Houston. In March, at The Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo, Texas, he established a new male record by consuming a 4.5-pound ribeye steak, along with salad, baked potato, shrimp cocktail, and a roll in just under nine minutes. Additionally, he won the Nathan’s Contest again in a tie-breaker against Kobayashi, although he later was bested by Kobayashi in a chicken satay contest, where he ate nearly nine pounds of chicken to Kobayashi’s twelve.

In 2009, Chestnut set yet another world record by eating 10.5 pounds of macaroni and cheese in seven minutes. He also secured victory once more at the Nathan’s Contest, surpassing his previous record by consuming 68 hot dogs, which was nine more than he did in 2008. However, Kobayashi triumphed at the Krystal Hamburger Championship that year. Furthermore, he made an appearance on “Man v. Food,” where he demolished a massive five-pound burrito in slightly over three minutes.

Chestnut claimed victory at the Shrimp Wontons eating competition in Singapore in 2010. He also won the Nathan’s Contest for the fourth consecutive year but fell short of beating his previous record. He topped the Pepto Bismol Bratwurst Eating Championship, consuming 42 brats in 12 minutes, along with winning the Upper Crust Pizza Eating competition by eating 37 slices in 10 minutes. The following year, he once again won the Nathan’s Contest, but Kobayashi established a new world record by eating 69 hot dogs at an event with independent judges away from the Nathan’s Contest, where he did not compete as he opted not to sign the necessary contract.

In 2012, Chestnut achieved a new record at the Toojay’s Corned Beef Eating Competition in Palm Beach Gardens, consuming 20 corned beef sandwiches in ten minutes. He also defended his title…

At the Nathan’s Contest, Chestnut once again matched his personal record of consuming 68 hotdogs. In the same year, he participated in a wing-eating contest on “Hell’s Kitchen” against some of the show’s contestants. The following year, he surpassed his own record at Nathan’s Contest by devouring 69 hotdogs. Additionally, he triumphed at both the Hooters World Wing-Eating Championship and the Hillshire Farm Bratwurst Eating World Championship.

In 2018, Chestnut teamed up with fellow competitive eater Tim Janus to compete on “The Amazing Race 30.”

He is scheduled to take part in the 2023 Jack’s Donuts World Donut Hole Eating Championship.

Training

To prepare for competitions, Chestnut has mentioned that he engages in fasting and stretches his stomach using milk, water, and protein supplements. For hotdog contests, he specifically trains by consuming 40 hotdogs at once and gradually increasing the amount to achieve competition-winning levels.

Other Accolades and Records

For Joey, competitive eating constitutes a full-time career. He trains throughout the year with consistent fasting and expanding his stomach capacity via protein supplements, milk, and water. Over the course of the year, his weight varies between 210 and 225 pounds.

Joey holds numerous records, including those for hard-boiled eggs (141 within eight minutes), bratwurst (70 in ten minutes), Matzoh balls (78 in eight minutes), hotdogs (69 in ten minutes at the 2013 Nathan’s contest), steak (4.5 pounds plus sides in under nine minutes), pork ribs (13.76 pounds in twelve minutes), and asparagus (12.8 pounds in ten minutes). On July 4, 2016, Joey consumed 70 hotdogs, followed by 72 the next year, and then a world-record 74 the year after that. In the 2019 Nathan’s contest, he achieved his 12th title by eating 71 hotdogs. In 2021, he set a new world record with 76 hotdogs consumed. Furthermore, in April 2023, on National Burrito Day, he won the inaugural Qdoba World Burrito Eating Championship in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, eating 14.5 burritos within ten minutes.

Personal Life

Shortly before defending his title in the 2014 Nathan’s competition, Chestnut proposed to his longtime girlfriend, Neslie Ricasa. However, the couple broke up a year later, in early 2015, prior to their planned wedding date. Currently, Chestnut resides in Westfield, Indiana.